I was surfing around, looking for emergency essentials, and found this Personal Emergency Kit that is advertised as meeting airport security guidelines. Not many kits actually say that. I am passing it along for whoever may be interested.

An "emergency kit" that doesn't even have a book of matches, let alone a Sparklite/Blastmatch/Ferrocerium rod? I think I'll pass.

If you read the list of contents, it's basically a First Aid Kit in a container made of reflective material. Nothing about starting a fire or signalling for help (except for the "world famous life jacket whistle").

I don't even need Doug to review this one for me <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Overall, I'd have to agree with you. Keep in mind that many New Yorkers still don't carry any personal flashlight at all, even a Photon Microlight, after the blackout two summers ago.

I was going to offer a defense of the kit by saying it's geared toward the "average" person, who probably works in an office. They would need a flashlight more. The average person may not know what a firesteel is.

However, the kit's literature says, "Ideal for travel, adventure and perfect for all outdoor sports." That is misleading. But it is better than nothing.

I think what drew my eye was the PEKPAC pouch itself. I'm always looking for a better one.

>>Keep in mind that many New Yorkers still don't carry any
>>personal flashlight at all, even a Photon Microlight, after
>>the blackout two summers ago.

This kit weighs more than half a pound and is too bulky to fit in a pocket, so I'm inclined to doubt that many of those people will buy it for themselves. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

>>However, the kit's literature says, "Ideal for travel,
>>adventure and perfect for all outdoor sports."

And the website clearly indicates that it's intended for camping and trekking (I presume that's the British term for backpacking?).

At ?34.99 it's a little pricey for a first aid kit. (Mountain Equipment Co-op sells those "World Famous" whistles for $1 Can. btw)

>>That is misleading. But it is better than nothing.

Not necessarily - it might well give someone false confidence and lead them into worse trouble. Also, a book of paper matches is better than nothing, because it will save your life in some situations.

If you're going to carry something that costs ?34.99 and weighs more than half a pound, then you're not the type of person to waste your money on this kind of flim-flammery.

So it's a little hard for me to tell who the intended market is for this "Personal Emergency Pack".

The pouch does look kinda neat, but I can't tell from the picture how big it is. (I would estimate, based on the known size of the whistle, that it's a little bigger than 4 Altoids tins put together.) It appears to have a rather small reflective sticker affixed to it; I don't think the whole pack is reflective.

In their defense I suppose that backpacking in Europe is different from in North America; on the Haute Route between France and Switzerland, for example, camping is prohibited and you have to book hotel rooms at either end of your day hike well in advance. But people die every year in the Cairngorms in Scotland, and even people from the Appalachians would not consider the Cairngorms to be real mountains, I'm sure. <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

All in all, it looks to me like a company that has been selling camping equipment for years and is now trying to respond to a perceived demand for "survival" equipment without bothering to do any research on the subject.

Yeah, the price is way steep for what it provides.

Does raise an interesting point though. How do you create a decent survival kit that will pass through security. Is it even possible?

There have been several threads on making a kit that will pass airport security. One of the best threads is this one. You can also do a search and come up with many more.


Robert

my apologies, didn't even think of doing a search

Don't worry about it. Sometimes it's good to bring up old topics as people and times change. I just wanted to point out the equipped to fly coach thread because it is a very good, and informative, thread.


Robert